9.12.2011

I start every day around midnight. And every day I have planned to take teaser photographs of my recently finished Malabrigo project, but I have to wait until the sun comes out and by then, I've found myself really busy at work. So for now you get no pictures.

I have nearly completed the last project (ends, weaving, blocking remain) and cast on a second. This time a double knit hat. I don't know what possessed me to do that. I have a vague recollection of it being pretty simple and just flying through the double knit starfish hat I designed before, but I must have been delusional. I do remember the ribbing being complicated, but I thought I would outsmart it this time by not doing ribbing(!). This means I need to cast on 192 stitches in alternating colors. Pain in the rear end. I hate casting on more than 6 really.

So I outsmarted it by doing a long tail cast on of 96 with two strands. Ha HA! but now I don't have alternating colors on my needles. Sometimes the front color is the second one on the needle and sometimes it's the first. This makes setting up a rhythm of knit front, purl back a little hard to establish.

On top of that, I can't seem to find a comfortable position for the yarn in my hands. I think I'm too accustomed to stranded colorwork where when I'm using one color the other is tucking itself out of the way in the back. In the double knitting scenario both colors need to be on the same side of the work. I think I recall putting both colors in one hand but I'm having a hell of a time doing it comfortably, spaced far enough apart to easily pick the color I need and keeping consistent tension on both, actually either.

But if I can get past this first row it all becomes easier right? sure.